Analysis Of Maya Angelou s Caged Bird - 1835 Words

Shakyra Milsap Dr. Marsha Newman English 102 April 4, 2016 Women’s Power Because I live in a community with a majority black population, it is very easy to know all of the famous African American people. Growing up with my grandparents, I always heard a lot about the loving Dr. Maya Angelou. She was a tremendous figure in their lives and a phenomenal woman. One day my family was sitting outside, and my mom was reading a book with a lot of famous poems. The one she read aloud was Maya Angelou’s poem â€Å"Caged Bird.† She was so emotional reading this poem. During that time, I did not understand her emotions. At my high school, we would always celebrate black history month, so one day my favorite teacher brought the movie â€Å"I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.† My classmates and I sat down and watched it for very first time. At the moment, I understood why my mom way so emotional when she read the poem. I finally understood the significance that poem brought to her life and what the poem was actually about. That da y brought the admiration I now have with Dr. Maya Angelou. I started reading her poems and studying her. She was a woman that explained tough topics about certain things. Needless to say, the topics were not popular. Maya Angelou spoke the truth. She was a great activist who changed many people lives with her words. On the site biography.com, the editors states, Maya Angelou was born on April 4, 1928 by the name of Marguite Ann Johnson; however, she did not grow up withShow MoreRelatedAnalysis Of Maya Angelou s I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings1575 Words   |  7 Pagesto feel different, and wish they were someone or something â€Å"better†. In Maya Angelou’s autobiography she demonstrates what its like growing up in a racist community and how it feels to be the outcast. Angelou continuously speaks about being someone different her ideal self, something she is completely different from. She feels this way due to the racist society she lives in. In I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings Maya Angelou demonstrates in her autobiography in 1969 that even with love and affectionRead MoreAnalysis Of Maya Angelou s I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings Essay1484 Words   |  6 Pages â€Å"There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.† By Maya Angelou, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. This is the quote my mom has been telling me every day since I was 13 and able to understand it. Maya Angelou wrote this poem in 1969 and it still speaks to millions of people today. Millions of people who have everything to say but never speak. This is just one example, my example on how relatable poems are even if they are hundreds of years old. Being able to relate to a poemRead MoreAnalysis Of Maya Angelou s I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings1219 Words   |  5 PagesLike many African American writers in American history, migration is a defining part of Maya Angelou’s life and character. In her memoir I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Maya thorough ly discusses each of the moves that shape the person she becomes. From St. Louis at seven to a Southern California junkyard at fifteen, Maya’s life is filled with both voluntary and involuntary migrations. Some of these moves are intensely emotionally taxing, while others allow her to grow and flourish. Although herRead MoreRhetorical Analysis Of Maya Angelou s I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings 1036 Words   |  5 PagesFily Thiam English 002 Mrs. Vilato 9 April 2015 Rhetorical Analysis on â€Å"Graduation† by Maya Angelou In Graduation, a chapter in her autobiography â€Å"I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings†, Maya Angelou talks vividly about her middle school graduation in the segregated South. Graduation is an important milestone in most people’s life, as they get a degree and move on to their next level, something better and more important, with the hope that they can use their new knowledge to achieve their life goals andRead MoreI Know Why The Caged Bird Sings1482 Words   |  6 Pages Maya Angelou tells of her life experiences and struggles in her book â€Å"I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings† that gives us insight about Maya’s life as a young black girl growing up in a time of racism. The novel discusses various forms of oppression that she had to face as well cope with them. Robert A. Gross wrote an analysis for Newsweek about the book and claimed that Angelou’s book is not only an interesting story of her own experience, but also a portrayal of a Southe rn black communityRead MoreMaya Angelou : An Influential Voices Of Modern Society Essay1386 Words   |  6 PagesMaya Angelou, born Marguerite Ann Johnson on the 4th of April 1928, was born in St. Louis, Missouri and grew up in Stamps, Arkansas. Maya Angelou is regarded as one of the most noteworthy, influential voices of modern society with over 50 doctorate degrees. She became a distinguished poet, educator, producer, actress, historian, filmmaker, memoirist, and civil rights activist throughout her life. In the 1930’s and 1940’s, Stamps, Arkansas was the embodiment of brutality and racial discriminationRead MoreLiterary Analysis Of Maya Angelous Caged Bird1341 Words   |  6 Pagesâ€Å"Caged Bird Analysis† â€Å"Equal rights, fair play, justice, are all like air: we all have it, or none of us has it.† This quote was taken by the poet Maya Angelou, who stressed the idea of equality in many of her works. One of her poems being, â€Å"Caged Bird.† In the poem the poet references two birds; one who is trapped in a cage, and the other bird who is free. Growing up as an African American in the 1920’s Angelou faced many hardships. She suffered many racial prejudices, and her writing reflects howRead MoreI Know Why The Caged Bird Sings1004 Words   |  5 PagesI Know Why The Caged Bird Sings Plot Overview - I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings is a book that speaks solely on the upbringing of Maya Angelou, and on the accomplishments, yet struggles that make Maya the woman she is. It begins in California in the 1930’s. Maya and her brother Bailey lived with her parents at a very young age, but after their divorced they were shipped to Arkansas to live their grandmother. They called their grandmother Momma, because she was a parental figure to both of them.Read MoreI Know Why The Caged Bird Sings And Still I Rise By Maya Angelou1517 Words   |  7 PagesPoems of Color The poems â€Å" I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings† and â€Å"Still I Rise† by Maya Angelou are both poems that speak on the issues of the mistreatment of African Americans, and how these challenges were created simply by the color of one’s skin and overcome. While the poems â€Å"Mother To Son† and â€Å" Dreams† by Langston Hughes refer to the hopes of African Americans for a better standard of living, and the consequences of departing from these dreams of bettering themselves. This comparison ofRead MoreMaya Angelou’s Unique Self Essay2562 Words   |  11 Pageschildhood (Angelou, 2009, p.20). In Maya Angelou’s autobiography, I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings, she recounts her early years as a young girl growing up in Stamps, Arkansas who faces displacement, trauma, and prejudice. It is through her character and artistic expression that she is able to overcome the trauma of her childhood and evolve into the distinguished and unique individual that has captivated millions through literature. In her book, I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings, Angelou reflects on